Classics and the Western Canon discussion
Introductions
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Please introduce yourself~
Adelle wrote: "I think The Iliad s going to be a great discussion...so if you've access to a copy, we'd love for you to join us."There are also several free versions online, though I think they're not the best translations. I'll be posting links to them when I start putting up the Iliad thread, and others will probably post other links they find.
Thanks for the warm welcome!I have a free copy of the Iliad on my phone, something translated in the mid-19th century. The formatting is whacked, so I ordered a hard copy of a more recent translation. I went for, um, this one:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/01...
A question about the discussions: Do they roll out week-by-week/chapter-by-chapter, or do I need to have the entire thing finished by the 5th of January. I think I should be able to make it by then, but there are no guarantees.
Katy! I've never introduced myself here, but since my friend did I suppose I should follow suit. I'm Marissa, live in Milwaukee, and while I spend a ridiculous amount of time reading Regency romances I occasionally like to mix it up and read a Great Book.
Marissa wrote: "Katy! I've never introduced myself here, but since my friend did I suppose I should follow suit. I'm Marissa, live in Milwaukee, and while I spend a ridiculous amount of time reading Regency roma..."What a treat to see you here! I'm going to do the Iliad, for sure. I don't see myself reading every book every group does, but I'd like to have a couple on the go at all times. (I've joined a handful of other groups with focus on Great Books.)
Katy wrote: "A question about the discussions: Do they roll out week-by-week/chapter-by-chapter, or do I need to have the entire thing finished by the 5th of January. I think I should be able to make it by then, but there are no guarantees. "They roll out. For the Iliad, I'm planning on two books a week, for a total of 12 weeks for the reading and discussion. I'll post a separate thread for each week's reading usually on Tuesday evening (Pacific time). We are quite strict here about no spoilers, so only material up to and including that week's reading is to be included in a thread. That is, the thread for Books 7 & 8 may include anything in the text up to and through Book 8, but not anything from Book 9 onward.
We have a two-week short "Interim Read" between our major books. This is both to give a bit of a palate cleanser, to allow those not quite finished discussing a book a brief period before they need to focus on the new book (though every discussion remains open permanently), and also gives a period to start the first section of reading for the new book so one doesn't have to choose starting the book before the previous discussion is over, or not be ready for the first section until after it has been open a few days for discussion. Hope that makes sense! The Interim Reads always short reads, usually at most two hours and usually much less, are not announced in advance, and are always something available for reading on the Internet so it doesn't matter whether you have a copy on your shelf.
Oh! That's awesome, thanks. We simply read a book a month in Norm Macdonald's book club, and then discuss the whole thing over a few days. If you're going to spread it out over 12 weeks, I'm totally going to be able to keep up. Yay! I'm so excited!
Hi there. I'm Erika. I joined the group a couple of weeks ago and have been reading the discussion of the Declaration of Independence, which has been fascinating and informative. For many years I read contemporary literature pretty exclusively, but more recently I have turned to the classics and read only a handful of contemporary books each year. This year I made a list of Greek and Roman classics that I would like to read and The Iliad is at the top of the list. I'm looking forward to participating in the discussion here. (I recently (re)read the Oedipus Cycle and also enjoyed your discussion of Antigone...made me want to read it again, but alas, I had already returned it to the library.)
Erika wrote: "Hi there. I'm Erika. I joined the group a couple of weeks ago and have been reading the discussion of the Declaration of Independence, which has been fascinating and informative. For many years I..."
Welcome! We'll be delighted to have you joining us for the Iliad discussion.
You can find various translations of Antigone online. Here are three places -- I don't know how good those translations are, though.
http://drama.eserver.org/plays/classi...
http://records.viu.ca/~johnstoi/sopho...
http://www.bartleby.com/8/6/
Ah! Everyman thank you! I bought myself a copy of The Oresteia for Christmas but after reading the beginning of the discussion board I'm thinking it might be better to wait until after reading The Iliad to begin it?
Erika wrote: "Ah! Everyman thank you! I bought myself a copy of The Oresteia for Christmas but after reading the beginning of the discussion board I'm thinking it might be better to wait until after reading The Iliad to begin it?"
If you have the time for both, I don't see any major reason to wait, though the discussions of Greek culture and the divinities which will presumably take place in our Iliad discussion may make your reading of the Oresteia more interesting.
Thank you for the advice. I will wait on the Oresteia until after the group discussion of the Iliad. I think I will need the background... and I have a lot of reading slated for January.
The Oresteia is interesting because it is the only complete trilogy we have. It is possible, though, if you haven't read the Greek dramatists, you'll find Sophocles more accessible.I do agree with Everyman that the Iliad isn't really necessary for background. You don't need a whole lot of info about the Oresteia that wouldn't be found in an introduction, and Homer is a very different experience than the tragedians.
If you don't have time to read both, that's a very different issue. :-)
As a matter of fact, just this month I read Oedipus Rex, Oedipus at Colonus, and Antigone. I remember reading Oedipus Rex many years ago for school, but found each of the plays much more engaging than I expected-or remembered. After reading the discussion here on Antigone I would like to read them again (Thankfully, Everyman has provided some online sources that save me the time of putting another hold on the book at the library). Perhaps I can fit The Oresteia into January...
Hello everyone!I'm Camilla, I'm 19 and I'm an Italian student. I live in a little twon near Milan, but my lessons are all in the city. I really enjoy both my rural twon with my house on the hills, and the great shapes of the city, his subtle (and less subtle) art.
I'm very fond of classics - also because I studied Latin and Ancient Greek - which, I believe, are the columns of our conscience as human beings.
And that's all, I think, for now. It'll be a pleasure to read along :)
P.S. sorry for my English - I know, I've to get better. I'm studying to reach a proper level!
Camilla wrote: "Hello everyone!I'm Camilla, I'm 19 and I'm an Italian student. I live in a little twon near Milan, but my lessons are all in the city. I really enjoy both my rural twon with my house on the hills..."
Welcome! It's great to have another person who reads Ancient Greek who can help us where the translations may seem obscure.
No need to apologize for your English -- it's just fine.
Glad to have you joining the discussion.
Hello! I joined a couple of days ago but am just now getting the chance to post an intro. :)I'm DaLynn, stay at home, homeschooling mom to 5 kiddos. The big boys are 12, 8, and 7, and my twins - another boy and my only girl - are 16 months old. I stay busy but wouldn't have it any other way!
I'm wanting to read through classics because it seems I missed out on quite a lot of great literature. I'm not sure why we weren't required to read more of it in school, and you can bet that my own kids will be reading more of the classics than I ever did!
I'm reading them mostly for enjoyment, and also as a pre-read for the possibility of assigning them to my kids at some point. This year my hope and plan is to read at least one classic per month. I have a list going already, but will certainly try to get in any books being discussed here that I possibly can.
Looking forward to reading and discussing with you all. Can't wait to get to know you!
Dalynn wrote: "Hello! I joined a couple of days ago but am just now getting the chance to post an intro. :)I'm DaLynn, stay at home, homeschooling mom to 5 kiddos. The big boys are 12, 8, and 7, and my twins - ..."
Welcome! It's great that you want to get back to some adult reading of the classics. We're still early in Homer, so grab a copy (at a bookstore, from the library, or free off the Internet; see the Resources section for several sites) and come join us!
Hi, I'm a woman in my 30s living in the UK. I read loads, including canonical classics, as a kid and teenager, but later developed a talent for not finishing books and hoarding unread ones, which I'm now working on! At times the book abandonment happened because of periods when ongoing health problems are worse, but sometimes, busyness or just monkey-mind, as Buddhists would call it.
I have picked up but not finished nearly all of the books on your recent list discussions (aside from Quixote, Middlemarch & Huck Finn, which I completed, all fifteen years ago or more). Just noticed that the group is reading The Illiad until the end of March, which is a good long time. I've got a nearly-ten-year-old copy of Robert Fagles' tranlslation, and am planning to join in once I've finished a couple of the books I've currently got on the go.
Antonomasia wrote: "Hi, I'm a woman in my 30s living in the UK. I read loads, including canonical classics, as a kid and teenager, but later developed a talent for not finishing books and hoarding unread ones, which..."
Welcome, and we'll be delighted to have you join the discussion of the Iliad as soon as you get a chance to.
Bill wrote: "Hello, I am a reader of many books living in rural Texas. I was excited to find a group both reading and discussing the classics. I look forward to delving into the Illiad and many other texts of ..."Welcome, Bill. We're glad to have you with us. You're our second Bill, so you just might have to be Texas Bill, or may be Tex for short!
Nah. Just kidding. You're welcome just as Bill. We look forward to hearing your thoughts.
Everyman wrote: "Bill wrote: "Hello, I am a reader of many books living in rural Texas. I was excited to find a group both reading and discussing the classics. I look forward to delving into the Illiad and many ot..."Welcome, Bill, reader of many books.
Wow! Bill has an epithet and a nickname and he only just got here! Welcome to the group, Bill.
Yes, and "reader of many books" might not be particularly helpful epithet in these parts. I suggest you look at our pictures for clarification. I for example look nothing like a cathedral. Or so I've been told. By intimates.
Isn't the reader of many books living in rural Texas named "Deloss"? Am I missing something? If his name is indeed "Bill" -- and I am all too aware that Bill is not unique or even rare -- you could check out our pictures. I look nothing whatsoever like a cathedral.
Or so I'm told. By intimates.
While I am not an intimate, I , too, think you look nothing like a cathedral...nor even a small family chapel. Guess we gots us two Bills.
To (kinda) paraphrase Animal Farm: One Bill good; Two Bills better.
Bill wrote: "Isn't the reader of many books living in rural Texas named "Deloss"? Am I missing something? If his name is indeed "Bill" -- and I am all too aware that Bill is not unique or even rare -- you cou..."
Looks like he changed his screen name. We are no long a Bill collecting group. [g]
It's an interesting concept, cathedrals contemplating the results of their reading. Hmmmmm. :-)
Still...they're built ever so slowly...they tend to stand ever so long...I think I get what you're saying. Works for me.
Deloss wrote: "Like a cathedral I patiently wait as time passes by to consider what I have read. Or at least something like that."
The Teaching Company has a fascinating new video course on Cathedrals, how they developed, how they are constructed, what the art means, etc. Delightful.
Hello, everyone. I'm Brandon, I'm 17 and I've been reading classics since I was 14 when I read my first which was Animal Farm. I love to read, which goes without saying, and although I'm a little too late for The Iliad and don't really have time to catch up, I eagerly await the next book you all choose to discuss! My favorite writers are:
William FaulknerJohn Steinbeck
Ernest Hemingway
Brandon wrote: "Hello, everyone. I'm Brandon, I'm 17 and I've been reading classics since I was 14 when I read my first which was Animal Farm. I love to read, which goes without saying, and although I'm a little t..."Welcome! Sorry you won't be able to catch up with the Iliad -- it's a book you certainly should read sometime, but at 17 you've got a lot of reading ahead of you.
Everyman wrote: "Brandon wrote: "Hello, everyone. I'm Brandon, I'm 17 and I've been reading classics since I was 14 when I read my first which was Animal Farm. I love to read, which goes without saying, and althoug..."I've read the Iliad once, but I've since wanted to revisit it and catch some of the stuff I might've missed. Oh well, next book!
Brandon wrote: "Everyman wrote: "Brandon wrote: "Hello, everyone. I'm Brandon, I'm 17 and I've been reading classics since I was 14 when I read my first which was Animal Farm. I love to read, which goes without sa..."
Welcome!
Welcome!
Hello,I've been looking for a group like this for two days! This is exactly what I wanted.
I'm an 18 years old student from the northern part of the Czech republic. I attend a secondary school and work on a parasitology research at local university. In less then 2 years I'm moving to Prague, one of the most beautiful cities I've ever seen, to study parasitology at the Charles University.
So, my main interest is biology- I consider myself a parsitologist (I focuse especially on helminthic endoparasites) but I'm fascinated also f.e. by mycology and evolution theories. And I love everything related to those old time naturalists from Darwin's times.
And, of course, I love literature. I'm able to read almost any genre, but my favorite is classical literature and good ancient historical fiction. Favorite books are Quo Vadis and The Egyptian. At the moment I'm reading mainly the books for school- you need to read 20 or 30 books from a list of classical literature given by your school to pass final exams and finish secondary school here. I'm enjoying most of these books but I'm not so free to read whatever I want because of that (many books I'd like to read at the moment aren't on the list at all).
I also love maps, wine and getting to know other cultures- I like to talk to people from different parts of this world, so if you're interested, I'll be more than happy if you contact me :) I really hope to travel to all those interesting places in future. And to try all the foreign foods! :)
Magdalena wrote: "Hello,...Welcome. We're glad you found us!
I have no idea what helminthic endoparasites are, and I bet few if any other people here do, but when it comes to classical literature, you've found the right place.
Everyman wrote: "I have no idea what helminthic endoparasites are, and I bet few if any other people here do, but when it comes to classical literatu..."
Thank you!
I'm sorry if I used wrong words, I don't often speak in English about this. By helminthic endoparasites I mean worms that live inside of bodies- like tapeworms, roundworms etc.
I'm happy to be here. On Monday I'm heading to the library for Iliad :)
Magdalena wrote: "Thank you!I'm sorry if I used wrong words, I don't often speak in English about this. By helminthic endoparasites I mean worms that live inside of bodies- like tapeworms, roundworms etc. "
Oh, you didn't use the wrong words at all! You used the exact right words; it's just that most of us here aren't scientists. But let's stick with helminthic endoparasites; works that live inside of bodies sounds much more unpleasant! I wouldn't mind somebody telling me I had helminthic endoparasites, because I wouldn't know what they were talking about, but if somebody told me I had a tapeworm, UGH!
Just joking here, of course. Hope American humor can make it successfully across the Atlantic and as far as the Czech Republic. Though at my age, I've had to keep learning different names for your country. Sort of like my maternal grandfather: when I looked him up in the census documents a while back, every census had a different country of origin for him: Germany, Bohemia, and one other, maybe Austria? I forget. Anyhow, poor Europe has had some real boundary challenges in the past hundred years.
Magdalena wrote: "I don't often speak in English about this."Speaking of which, your English is really excellent. And studying parasitology at age 18. Impressive. I wish we had school systems as good as yours.
Hello everyone,I am Max Gabrielson, a new group member. I teach Latin at Greek at the high school in Wilton, CT, where I live. I am a great lover of classical literature and am delighted to have found a group of people who share the same interest.
Over the years I have had the pleasure of reading with a number of talented students the works I love most, including: the Iliad and the Odyssey; Vergil's Aeneid; Ovid's Metamosphoses, Fasces, Amores and Ars Amatoria, the poems of Catullus; the Homeric Hymn to Demeter; Greek tragedy (we are currently reading Oedipus Rex in advanced Greek); Plato's Apology of Socrates; and Herodotus.
I also enjoy many non-classical works, including novels and poetry.
I look forward to sharing with others in this group.
wow ... I can't believe I wrote "Fasces" instead of "Fasti"! Lately I have been putting together a presentation for my students on the Roman fasces (the bundle of sticks with a projecting axe, symbol of consular imperium) and that was on my mind. I'll try to be more accurate next time.
I'm Rolland. My wife and I met at a book group, where we discussed "The Iliad" the very first time we met. We are celebrating our twentieth anniversary this year. I can't say I have the same expectations for this group, but I'm certainly looking forward to good conversation with thoughtful people about challenging literature.
max wrote: "Hello everyone,I am Max Gabrielson, a new group member. I teach Latin at Greek at the high school in Wilton, CT, where I live. I am a great lover of classical literature and am delighted to have..."
Welcome to the group, Max! I studied Greek at St. John's College about 20 years ago and have recently gone back it. I have had to re-learn a lot, and my skills are still pretty rusty, but I'm enjoying the struggle anyway. It will be great to have you as a resource for language questions (if you don't mind, that is.) It looks like we're going to be sticking with Homer for a while, so prepare to be bombarded! ;)
Rolland wrote: "I'm Rolland. My wife and I met at a book group, where we discussed "The Iliad" the very first time we met. We are celebrating our twentieth anniversary this year. I can't say I have the same expect..."Greetings, Rolland! It sounds like the Iliad was a very auspicious book for you -- we're only a little over half-way though it, so feel free to join in!
max wrote: "Hello everyone,I am Max Gabrielson, a new group member. I teach Latin at Greek at the high school in Wilton, CT, where I live. I am a great lover of classical literature and am delighted to have..."
Excellent! Another Greek reader to help us understand the hard passages.
Delighted to have you join us. If you haven't already, be sure to vote for our next book (click on polls on the right side of the home page).
Greetings everyone, I am fairly new to this group although I have been a part of several other GR Groups for some time so I may know a few of you from other places. I am a single "grandmother" (choking that out - prefer Nana) of seven, soon to be eight darling kids aged non quite hatched to almost seventeen. I can not recall a time when I was not reading and I began reading classics. It has been my experience that they take on different meanings, or perspectives, depending on where one happens to be in life's journey as they are read. I did not think I would be able to join you in reading "the Iliad". I am finishing up a State Conference this weekend and then commencing preparation for a National Conference. My computer crashed in the midst of all this and just returned from its doctor. I used this time to join the ranks of eReaders and purchased a Kindle Fire. That has a learning curve. I finally managed to download a book from Project Gutenberg successfully but I don't know how I did it! Don't think there is a way to say exactly how many books I read at a time. It probably depends on what projects I have going. Right now I am reading "Kristen Lavransdatter", "The Invisible Man", "Murder of the Century", "Posionwood Bible" an indepth study of the book of Romans, a course on the Constitution - I think the book is Constitution 101 was ill all week so I actually start this in earnest Wednesday, and about 14 books on remodeling a small house. Oh, am also working on some geneaolgy and heradry research and learning WorldCat. Thats it .... I am really looking forward to reading more Classics and hoping that I can add the Iliad in March.
Hello, All. I teach in the First-Year Writing Program at Quinnipiac University and am also a writer; my debut novel is due out this summer. One of the occupational hazards of teaching is that we keep reading the same few texts over and over again. There are many classics I have never read, and I find myself gravitating more to them these days. I will not be able to join you on every read, depending on what is already piled up on my desk, but I hope to at least eavesdrop and jump in when I can! Cheers, Kathy
Susan wrote: "Greetings everyone, I am fairly new to this group although I have been a part of several other GR Groups for some time so I may know a few of you from other places. I am a single "grandmother" (ch..."Welcome! Sounds as though you keep busy -- but glad you can find time to join us here.
Kathy wrote: "Hello, All. I teach in the First-Year Writing Program at Quinnipiac University and am also a writer; my debut novel is due out this summer. One of the occupational hazards of teaching is that we ke..."Glad to have you with us. We had best watch our grammar, with a writing teacher on board!
Having taught high school English, I know what you mean about reading the same books over and over. It's nice to get a wider variety here.
Classics and the Western Canon
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Authors mentioned in this topic
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Welcome. If that's you first Goodreads post, we're in for a real treat having you in the group!
I think we also have a fairly high standard for what is quality literature, but we are definitely NOT mad as hatters. I think you'll find us very welcoming and friendly and delighted to be joined by people who enjoy good book discussion.
Glad to have you here, and if you can't catch up with the Proust discussion, which is nearing its end, I hope you'll join us for the next major read, the Iliad, starting in January. (And for the mystery Interim Read which will be announced at the end of the Proust discussion.)